Welcome back to Shuffle! The music blog where I take random songs, put them under a random topic and bring it together for a perfect playlist for you to enjoy and comment on. This is a continued blog about the 2021 nominees for the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame to take place in October. See the previous blog for the list of nominees or go to this link to view all the nominees and vote for them on a daily basis. Let your vote be counted for your favorites! Let’s move on with more commentary.
Next Nominee:
“I’m Every Woman” Chaka Khan. Chaka, Chaka, Chaka Khan. Her sultry vocals have given us a lot of joy over the years. From her seventies classics, to her Eighties hit via Prince “I Feel For You” she is simply amazing. Yes, put her in the Hall of Fame this year panel! Per Wikipedia.com: “Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan, is an American musician, singer and songwriter. Her career has spanned nearly five decades, beginning in the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the funk band Rufus. Known as the “Queen of Funk”,[1] Khan was the first R&B artist to have a crossover hit featuring a rapper, with “I Feel for You” in 1984.[2] Khan has won ten Grammy Awards and has sold an estimated 70 million records worldwide.[3]” I did not know that little tidbit about “I Feel For You” but I love it! And here is a WTF from Wiki: “She has been nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame three times as a solo artist and four times as a member of Rufus featuring Chaka Khan;[6] the first time in 2012 as a member of Rufus.” Three times??? People, get her in the Hall of Fame now! Ridiculous!
#ImEveryWoman #ChakaKhan #Prince #Rufus #QueenOfFunk #IFeelForYou
Next Nominee:
“Whip It” Devo. “Crack that whip!” Yes, Devo are nominated this year. I don’t know a ton about Devo but they were definitely innovative and original back in the eighties. The songs and videos were so out there and at a time when MTV was in its infancy, they were fun to watch. I also just found out they are from my home state of Ohio, Akron specifically. Devo is fun but also has a undercurrent of politics to their music as well. From Wiki on the idea of ‘Devo’: “The name Devo comes from the concept of “de-evolution” and the band’s related idea that instead of continuing to evolve, mankind had begun to regress, as evidenced by the dysfunction and herd mentality of American society. In the late 1960s, this idea was developed as a joke by Kent State University art students Gerald Casale and Bob Lewis, who created a number of satirical art pieces in a devolution vein.” Do I think Devo should be in the Hall of Fame? Yes, eventually. This year, perhaps not. Or as stated before, the Hall of Fame needs to speed up their induction process.
#WhipIt #Devo #MTV #Ohio #Akron #Deevolution #HerdMentality #KentStateUniversity #GeraldCasale #BobLewis
Next Nominee:
“So Far Away” Carole King. This is a great YouTube clip btw. This is live along with James Taylor on guitar. Carole King is one of the most prolific female songwriters in modern music history. Her songs are staples of radio and covers and her life was made into a Broadway play Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. She definitely deserves to be in the Hall of Fame and I’m hoping she is chosen this year. Her album Tapestry is forever a classic that keeps being rediscovered decade after decade. Some of her hit songs that she has written are “You’ve Got A Friend”, “The Locomotion”, “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman”, “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow” and “Pleasant Valley Sunday” (a favorite Monkees song of mine). She is simply incredible!
#SoFarAway #CaroleKing #JamesTaylor #Broadway #BeautifulTheCaroleKingMusical #Tapestry #YouveGotAFriend #TheLocomotion #YouMakeMeFeelLikeANaturalWoman #WillYouStillLoveMeTomorrow #PleasantValleySunday #Monkees
Next Nominee:
“Bulls on Parade” Rage Against the Machine. I was not a fan of their music when they first appeared on the national music scene back in 1992. It was loud, hard core and very political. I just wasn’t into all that back then. I was too busy partying my ass off in college and attempting to become a thespian of the stage back in Ashland University in Ashland, Ohio. But as time went on and I read their lyrics, I began to see how important they are in music history, teaching history and ultimately questioning ‘are we learning from our history’? They definitely should be in the Hall of Fame and there have been two other times they have been nominated but with the five I’ve chosen who are much older, I think they should wait some more. They will just have to keep raging a bit longer!
#BullsonParade #RageAgainstTheMachine #AshlandUniversity #AshlandOhio
Next Nominee:
“Running Up That Hill” Kate Bush. Kate Bush wasn’t on my radar very much in my musical tastes. She was for those kids who wanted to discover music before anybody else did, perhaps the goths were into her as well. But I am familiar with her hits “Running Up That Hill” and her duet with Peter Gabriel “Don’t Give Up”. She has a unique style and voice and yes, deserves to be in the Hall of Fame, but not yet! There are some old timers who need to get in first! When I moved to San Francisco back in 2005, I did discover a lot of my friends seemed to be into her and her entire catalog. Drag queens especially tend to like their Kate Bush. She is a talent and writes her own music which is always to be admired. Per Wiki: ” In 1978, aged 19, she topped the UK Singles Chart for four weeks with her debut single “Wuthering Heights“, becoming the first female artist to achieve a UK number one with a self-written song.”
#RunningUpThatHill #KateBush #PeterGabriel #DontGiveUp #SanFrancisco #DragQueens #Goths #UKSinglesChart #WutheringHeights #FemaleSongwriters
That’s it for this edition of Shuffle! Hope you enjoyed it and there will be a Part Three to this series of the nominees of the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame so stay tuned for that. Keep on shuffling the songs you love by the artists you love! Also feel free to subscribe, comment and share my blog. Thank you for your support!